Piano-truck.



G. A. PERRY.

PIANO TRUCK. uPLIoATIon FILED man, 1909.

979,089. Patented Dec. 2o, 1910,

ame/Mo@ GEORGE A. PRRY, OF LODI, WISCONSIN.

PIANO-TRUCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 11, 1909.

Patented Dec. 20, 1910.

Serial No. 532,697.

To all whom 'it may concern.'

lie it known that I, GEORGE A. PERRY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lodi, in the county of Columbia and State of Visconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Pianoflrucks, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention is an improved piano truck and consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed. l One object of my invention is to effect improvements in the construction of the truck whereby the position of the handles may be changed as may be desired to enable the truck to be readily used by people of different heights and in going down and up stairways.

A further object of the invention is to provide the truck with a roller which is adjustable toward and from the lower end of the truck and with means for adjusting said roller to facilitate the engagement of the truck with the piano case and the disengagement thereof therefrom.

In the accompanying drawings z-Figure 1 is a perspective view of a piano truck constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the lower portion of the truck, showing the truck frame raised on the roller in full lines in position for moving the piano and lowered in dotted. lines in position to facilitate the engagement.; i

of the truck frame with the piano or its dis,- engagement therefrom. Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view of the same. Fig. 4 is a detail elevation of the pedal lever for shifting the roller of the truck.

The side bars 1 of the truck frame are connected together at points a suitable distance from their ends by cross bars 2 which are provided with cushions 3 to prevent Inarring or injury of a piano loaded on the truck. The lower ends of the side bars 1, which are made of iron or steel, are outturned to form arms 4 which are provided at their ends with slightly up-turned nose pieces 5 to be placed under a piano and which nose pieces are here shown as provided on their upper sides with teeth or ridges 6 to prevent the piano from slipping. The lower cross bar 2 bears against the piano and prevents the latter from getting too close to the side bars 1 at the lower ends thereof. On opposite sides of the side bars at suitable distances from their ends are plates 8 which are provided with loops 9, said loops enabling straps 10 to be employed for securing the piano on the truck. The side bars 1 are provided with a series of adjusting openings 1l. Handle bars 12 are pivotally connected at their inner ends to the upper ends of the side bars 1 as at 13- and are connected together by means of a cross bar 14. Brace bars 15 are pivotallyas to facilitate the use of the truck in moving pianos up or down stairs.

A pair of bearing plates 18 are secured as by means of rivets or other suitable devices 19 to the lower ends of the side bars 1 on the outer sides thereof, said bearing plates extending somewhat in rear of and also beyond the lower ends of said side bars. The said bearing plates are provided each with a curved bearing slot 20, the arms 2l and 22 of said slots extending respectively downwardly and forwardly and rearwardly and upwaldly. The supporting roller 23 of the truck has an aXle 24, the ends of which are mounted and shiftable in the said bearing slots so that the roller may have its bearings at the outer ends of the lower arms 21 of said slotswhen the truck is loaded and is in use in movi-ng a piano or may have its bearings in ther upper ends of the arms 22 of said slots to enable the truck frame to be lowered so as to facilitate the engagement of the nose pieces 5 with the lower side of the piano or their disengagement therefrom, as will be understood. Coiled retractile springs 26 each have one end connected to one end of the roller aXle as at 27 and the other end connected to the truck frame as at 28, the action of the said springs, as will be understood, being to retain the aXle of the roller in either end of the curved bearing slots in which said roller aXle may be disposed.

A lever for shifting the roller so as to dispose its axle in either end of the bearing slots 20 as may be desired, is shown at 29, the said leverI being pivoted as at 30 to a plate 3l which is secured to the lower cross bar 2 of the truck frame by means of a bolt 32, said lever being forked and provided with a forwardly extending curved tee-shaped arm 38 which extends in front of the roller and a rearwardly extending curved pedal arm 34 which extends rearwardly of the roller. The user of the truck, by placing one foot on the pedal arm 34k and pushing may by the engagement of said pedal arm, force the latter forwardly so as to cause its axle to shift to the front ends of the arms 2l of the slots 20, ite-being, of course, understood that while thus pressing on the pedal arm lever, the

operator or trnckman will draw the frame of the truck upwardly. By placing his toe under the ends of the pedal arm 34: and drawing upwardly therefrom and at the same time lifting up the truck frame, the truclman can cause the arm 33 of the lever 29 to vengage the roller and force the latter in a direction to shift the axle thereof to the ends of the arms 22 of the bearing slots 20. Hence, the lever 29 may be employed for shifting the roller to either position. With respect to the truck frame, as above stated, the springs 26 will keep the roller axle in the position in which it has been placed.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed, is

l. A truck of the class described, comprising a supporting frame, a floor engaging roller movably mounted on the frame, and

a bifurcated lever mounted on the frame and having its bifurcated members normally free from the roller and disposed respectively in front and in rear of the same, said members straddling the roller from above to engage opposite sides thereof, and including foot operated means to tilt the lever in either direction for shifting the position of the roller.

2. A truck of the class described, comprising a supporting frame, a ioor engaging roller movably mounted on the frame, a bifurcated lever mounted on the frame and having its bifurcated members astride the roller to engafre opposite sides thereof and including foot operated means to tilt the lever in either direction for shifting the position of the roller, and yielding means acting on the roller to hold the same in either position to which it is moved by the lever.

3. A truclr of the class described, comprising a supporting frame having arcuate slots, the ends of which form seats, a roller having ournals disposed in the slots and shiftable from one seat to the other of the latter, springs for holding the roller with its journals seated in either end of the slots, and a foot actuated device normally disengaged from the roller and mounted to be moved into engagement with either side of the latter to exert a pressure on the roller to shift the same against the tension of the springs from one position to another.

4. A truck of the class described, comprising a supporting frame having arcuate slots, the ends of which form seats, a roller having journals disposed in the slots and shiftable from one seat to the other of the latter, springs for holding the roller with its journals seated in either end of the slots, a foot actuated device normally disengaged from the roller and mounted to be moved into engagement with either side of the latter to exert a pressure on the roller to shift the same against the tension of the springs from one position to another, a cushion-carrying bar mounted on' the frame above and parallel with the roller, and means for supporting the said device centrally on the bar to roller for laterally shifting the same to raise or lower the frame.

In testimony whereof I aiiiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE A. PERRY.

Witnesses VERNA Woon, HERBERT PALMER. 

